The Return
by bkwerm22
Summary: Takes place a year after Will goes into remission
1. Chapter 1

Will was feeling a little off when he woke up one morning. He entered the kitchen to find Sami making coffee. Sami turned around when she heard her son's footsteps. "Good morning, Will!" she said brightly.

"Morning, mom," Will replied. He sat down at the counter and yawned.

"Can I make you something to eat?" Sami asked.

"Nah. I'm not very hungry," Will said. Sami frowned and walked closer to her son.

"Are you sure? Are you feeling okay, baby?" she asked. Will smiled at her reassuringly.

"Mom, I'm fine," he lied. "I'm supposed to meet Sonny in a bit. I'll eat then."

"Well okay…" Sami said.

"I think I'll go get dressed now," Will announced. He stood up from the counter and walked around to kiss his mother on the cheek. Then he headed off to his bedroom to change out of his pajama pants and t-shirt.

Will met Sonny at the coffee shop an hour later. Sonny was busy helping a customer, so Will quietly sat down at a table and waited patiently for his boyfriend to finish. After the woman got her coffee, Sonny looked up and smiled upon seeing Will. He made his way over. "Hey you," Sonny said, bending down to kiss his boyfriend.

"Hey," Will greeted him.

"You ready to get breakfast?" Sonny asked.

"Yeah! Let's go," Will said. He stood up and took Sonny's hand. Sonny let the barista know he'd be back later and they headed out the door.

Half an hour after ordering breakfast, Sonny and Will's food arrived. "Thanks! I'm starving," Sonny said when his meal was placed before him. He immediately started eating. Will chuckled at Sonny's gusto and looked down at his own plate. He had ordered scrambled eggs and sausage. Will thought it looked delicious. He took a deep whiff and felt his stomach roil. Sonny looked up from his plate and frowned. He watched as Will pushed his food around with a fork. "Will?"

"Hmm?" Will looked up and was met with Sonny's concerned gaze. "What?"

"Why aren't you eating?" Sonny asked.

"I guess… I'm just not hungry," Will admitted. He couldn't bear to be stared at in the way Sonny was looking at him, so he looked back at his plate.

"Will?" Sonny asked. Will kept his eyes trained on his plate. "Will, look at me," Sonny demanded.

Will slowly raised his eyes once more. "Yeah?" Sonny frowned when he looked upon Will's face. He looked pale.

"Will? Are you feeling okay?" Sonny asked.

"Yes. I'm fine, Sonny. I'm just not hungry," Will insisted. "But you go ahead and eat." Sonny remained unconvinced, but started to eat again. When he finished, he waved his hand at their waiter, who was passing by the table.

"Can I get the check?" Sonny asked.

"Of course," the waiter said. He looked at Will's full plate. "Can I get you a box?"

"Um… yeah, sure," Will replied. The waiter nodded and went off towards the kitchen. Once he left, Sonny reached across the table and took Will's hands in his.

"Will, are you sure you're okay?" Sonny asked.

"Sonny, I just don't have much of an appetite. I mean, I've never been much of a breakfast eater," Will replied. "Don't worry about me, okay?"

"Okay…" Sonny said. Just then, the waiter returned with a doggy bag and check.

"Here you are," the waiter. He set the doggy bag in front of Will and the check in front of Sonny. "Enjoy the rest of your day!" The waiter left and Sonny reached for his wallet. He took out a twenty-dollar bill and left it on the table.

"Are you ready to go?" Sonny asked, standing up from the table. Will nodded and made to get up as well. When will stood up, his vision went white and stars danced in front of his eyes. He put a hand on the back of his chair to steady himself. "Will?"

Will waved his hand dismissively. "I'm okay."

"You don't look okay," Sonny said.

"Sonny," Will said, straightening up. He stepped forward a few steps. "I'm fi-" Will's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the ground.

"Will!" Sonny shouted in alarm. He could faintly hear gasps from the other patrons, but Sonny ignored them. He knelt down by his boyfriend's side and gently slapped Will's cheek. "Will? Wake up! Please wake up!" When there was no response, Sonny looked up in a panic. "Someone call an ambulance!"


	2. Chapter 2

Will's eyes fluttered open a couple minutes before the ambulance arrived. Sonny was cradling him in his arms and smiled in relief when Will looked up at him. He stroked Will's cheek lovingly. "Hey baby," he murmured.

"What-what happened?" Will asked groggily.

"You passed out? How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay," Will replied. He surveyed his surroundings and realized there were many people staring down at him. Feeling a little unnerved, Will started to sit up. Sonny gently placed a hand on Will's chest and eased him back down.

"Easy there, tiger. You just lay back and relax. An ambulance is on its way."

"Sonny, I'm fine," Will sat up again and immediately felt dizzy. "Whoa," he said, putting a hand to his head.

"No you aren't. You didn't eat any of your breakfast and passed out. You need to lie still," Sonny insisted. Will sighed and laid back in Sonny's arms. He was so embarrassed about passing out in a restaurant and nervous about going to the hospital. Truth be told, this wasn't the first time Will lacked an appetite. He had been eating on and off for a month now. He hadn't, however, passed out like this before. The only reason why Will hadn't said anything to his family about it was because he was afraid of it being indicative of something serious.

Sonny looked at his boyfriend with concern. Will was looking pale and had bags under his eyes. "I don't know why I didn't notice it this morning but you look really tired, baby."

"I uh… I didn't get much sleep last night," Will admitted.

"Oh Will…" Sonny sighed.

Just then, two EMTs rushed into the restaurant with a gurney. "Did someone call for an ambulance?" an EMT named Jason asked.

"Over here!" Will and Sonny's waiter shouted, beckoning to the EMTs. Jason and his partner Tara rushed over.

"What do we got?" Jason asked.

"My boyfriend. He passed out," Sonny replied.

"I'm fine. I'm just a little dizzy," Will argued.

"Okay, well let's make sure. Maybe we can avoid a hospital visit," Jason suggested. He knelt down on the other side of Will. "Okay, what's your name?"

"Will," Will replied.

"All right, Will. Do you know what happened?" Jason began.

"Yeah. We were eating breakfast; I wasn't hungry and didn't eat. Then I passed out," Will said. "But I'm fine. Really I am."

"Okay, well let me just check your blood pressure and heart rate," Jason replied. He took Will's wrist and looked at his watch. After a minute, the EMT dropped Will's arm. "Well, you're heart rate is a little slow. I'm going to just check your blood pressure." Tara handed Jason a portable blood pressure monitor. Jason fitted the cuff around Will's upper arm. Then he took the stethoscope from around his neck and placed it on Will's arm. He began checking Will's blood pressure. When Jason finished, he removed the cuff and looked at Will with a serious expression. "Will, your blood pressure is 60/40. That's very low and unfortunately, I must insist that we take you to the hospital immediately."

Will sighed. "I'm fine. Really," he argued.

"Will, you are obviously not fine. You're going to the hospital," Sonny said.

"Do you think you can stand?" Jason asked.

"Yes. Because like I already told you, I'm fine," Will insisted.

"He tried getting up earlier and fainted," Sonny pointed out.

"Okay. My partner Tara and I are going to lift you up on a stretcher. Then we will take you to the hospital," Jason explained.

Will sighed. "Fine."

Ten minutes later, Will was loaded up into the ambulance. "How are you doing, Will?" Jason asked.

"I'm fine," Will replied.

"Okay. Let's head out," Jason said. He turned to Sonny who had followed them out of the hospital. "Would you like to ride with him?"

Sonny nodded. "Please." He scrambled up into the ambulance and sat down by Will's side. Sonny grasped his boyfriend's hand and squeezed gently. "Everything will be okay," he said.

"Sonny what if…" Will trailed off.

"No. I know what you are thinking, but don't. Maybe it's something else," Sonny said, trying to comfort his boyfriend. Jason, meanwhile, had clambered up into the ambulance with Will and Sonny. Tara closed the doors behind him and got in the driver's seat.

"But it could be," Will reasoned.

"Will, we are going to get you to the hospital as quickly as possible. Don't worry," Jason piped up. He didn't know what Will and Sonny was talking about, but there could be any number of reasons for Will's collapse.

"You don't understand," Will replied. "I um… I've been in remission for a year now. I had cancer."


	3. Chapter 3: Sonny's POV

Author's Note:

**SPOILER ALERT! DON'T READ IF YOU DIDN'T WATCH DAYS OF OUR LIVES TODAY, JANUARY 15. **

Um, so does anyone else want to rip out Gaby's hair, kick Rafe where it counts, and punch Nick in the face? I dunno about you, but I was kind of like "Go Chad! Expose Nick and Gabi for who they are: selfish, conniving, con artists. Lol, okay, end of rant. Enjoy this update!

Sonny's Point of View

I sat on a bench just outside the examination room where Dr. Terry was looking Will over.  
By the time we had arrived to the hospital, Will's temperature had spiked to 101.5 degrees. My nerves were frayed; what if the cancer had come back? As I sat there, waiting for Will's parents to arrive, I thought about what had just happened a couple minutes ago:

Ten Minutes Earlier

While Will was getting dressed in a hospital gown, I called Sami and Lucas to let them know what was going on. They said they would be at the hospital as soon as possible. After hanging up, I decided to go sit with Will while he waited for Dr. Terry to come examine him. I wasn't prepared for what I saw when I entered the hospital room.

A nurse had just finished helping Will get ready for Dr. Terry and came out to tell me I could go and sit with my boyfriend until the doctor got there. I took a deep breath and entered the room. The first thing I noticed was the pile of Will's clothes folded neatly on a chair. Curiously, it appeared that Will had been wearing multiple layers, despite it being 90 degrees outside. Then I looked at Will and gasped in alarm. He was lying back on the examination chair in nothing but a hospital gown. I could immediately tell he had lost a lot of weight. "Oh Will," I whispered. "Will, you look terrible."

"Gee, thanks," Will replied sarcastically.

"Sorry… I just mean… oh God, Will… you're way too skinny," I clarified.

"I know it looks bad but I just… I haven't been hungry lately," Will said. He looked down at his hands, ashamed. I frowned and quickly walked towards my boyfriend and took his hand.

"Will, why haven't you told anyone that?" I asked.

"Because I didn't think it was a big deal."

"Not a big deal? Will, you're a stick!" I said.

"I know… it's just that… I'll get something to eat and think it looks delicious. But then the smell makes me nauseous," my boyfriend said.

"Will… what else haven't you told me or your family?" I asked.

"That's what I would like to know," Dr. Terry said, entering the room. "Nurse Carol just gave me your results of the pre check-up. You are 120 lbs and your blood pressure is 60/40. For someone your height, you should weigh at least 135 lbs. And your blood pressure is dangerously low."

"I'm just going to go wait outside," I said. But really, I was starting to feel a little sick to my stomach. What could be wrong with my boyfriend?

Present

I heard Ms. Brady before I saw her. Her voice echoed down the hallway from the nurse's station. "I'm looking for my son, Will Horton? He passed out at a restaurant?" The next sound I heard was Sami's heels as they clicked rapidly on the hospital floor. She appeared around the corner and I quickly scrambled up on the floor. She rushed over to me, a look of panic on her face.

"Sonny? What happened?" she asked.

"We were going out for breakfast and he wasn't eating anything," I replied. "He said he wasn't hungry and when he we got up to leave, he just collapsed. It was so scary."

"Is he in with the doctor right now?" Sami asked.

"Yeah. Sami, he doesn't look good. I'm really worried about him," I said. She patted me on the shoulder.

"Why don't you come in when Dr. Terry talks to Will and I about what's going on?" she suggested. I sighed with relief.

"Really? That would… that would be amazing," I said. Sami had been so supportive of my relationship with Will. She had welcomed me into their lives with open arms and I was very grateful. Will was my life and I wanted to know what was going on with my boyfriend.

"Good. Now, did the doctor say anything at all in front of you about Will?" Sami asked.

I looked down at my feet and nodded. I didn't want to tell Sami what I heard because I knew it would worry her. At the same time, she was going to hear about it anyway.

"Sonny? It's okay. You can tell me," she said.

I took a deep breath. "Okay. His blood pressure is really low and his weight has dropped to 120 lbs. Dr. Terry said it should be at least 135," I explained. Sami took a sharp breath and sat down in a chair outside the examination room. I sat down next to her and took her hand, giving it a squeeze.

"God, how did that happen? How did I not notice?" Sami asked.

"I mean… I didn't notice that he was losing weight either. He was wearing baggy clothes…" I said, trying to be comforting and failing. "But Mrs. Brady… he looked bad when I saw him in his hospital gown."

Just then, Dr. Terry emerged from the hospital room. She looked at us sitting there and smiled. "Hello, Sami," she said.

"Hello Dr. Terry. What's going on with my son? Sonny here already told me his blood pressure was low and he weighs 120 lbs?"

"That's correct. Ms. Brady, I think we should do some tests. I've talked to Will and his symptoms are very similar to those a patient with cancer exhibits," Dr. Terry said.


	4. Chapter 4: Sonny's POV and Will's POV

_Cancer._ The word reverberated in my brain. If I had only noticed Will's rapid weight loss sooner, maybe he'd be fine right now. I had told Sami I hadn't noticed it because of the baggy clothing Will had taken to wearing in the past couple months. Truth was, Will and I had an active sex life up until a month ago. Then, work had gotten extremely busy when Chad had gone off to Europe for an extended vacation. Every time Will and I had time to our selves, he'd always be tired. I had attributed it to the fact that he had been busy with school. However, I should have known it was something else. Now, I could smack myself for not thinking it was something else. Suddenly, I felt sick to my stomach and my knees were weak. Next thing I knew, Sami and Dr. Terry were helping me to a chair.

"Sonny? Sonny, are you okay?" Sami asked.

I shook my head. "I should have noticed," I said. Overwhelming guilt washed through me. Sami placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and shook her head in disagreement.

"Sonny, no one noticed. Look, I'm going to go in and talk to Will really quick. Do you want to come in with me?" Sami asked.

"I do… but my legs feel like Jello," I admitted.

"Okay," Sami replied. "Well you just come in when you're ready." She gave me a reassuring smile and turned to talk with Dr. Terry.

"All right, I am going to get things rolling. I will have someone come pick Will up from the examination room in about ten minutes," Dr. Terry said. Sami thanked her and the doctor walked away. Sami gave me one last squeeze on the shoulder and entered the examination room where Will was. Once she disappeared into the room, I sat back in the chair and rested the back of my head on the wall. I took five calming breaths and willed my legs to work again; I wanted to be strong for Will.

_Will's POV_

"Will, I think we need to do some tests. I'm sorry to tell you this, but you are exhibiting signs of a relapse," Dr. Terry said.

My heart leapt into my throat. Could the cancer be back? This couldn't be happening! Sure, I hadn't been feeling well and I'd lost some weight. But cancer?

"Will? Did you hear what I said?" Dr. Terry asked. I jumped a little and looked at her.

"What?"

"I said, I'm going to go talk with your mom outside and then I'm going to have a nurse come get you so we can run some tests. Will you be okay by yourself for a bit?"

I nodded. Dr. Terry nodded back and left the room. I watched her go and caught a glimpse of Sonny and my mom when she opened the door. They were talking and Sonny had an upset look on his face. I thought about Sonny's face when he saw me. It was a look of pure shock and worry. I lifted up the collar of my hospital gown and looked down at my stomach. For the first time, I realized my ribs were visible beneath the skin. I gulped and dropped the collar.

Suddenly, I heard a muffled exclaim of alarm coming from outside. "Sonny! Sonny, are you okay?" I heard my mom say. My stomach dropped and I sat up quickly, ready to rush out to see what was wrong. But then, I felt a wave of dizziness and had to lie back down. All I could do was hope to God that my boyfriend was okay.

A couple minutes later, my mom walked through the door. She looked at me and her face immediately crumpled. She rushed over and pulled me into a hug. It felt like an eternity before she pulled away again. "Oh Will. Why? Why didn't you say you were feeling bad?"

I looked down at my hands and shrugged. "I don't know. I'm sorry," I replied. When I looked back up, my mom was looking at me in concern.

"It's okay, baby. Whatever happens, we will figure things out," she promised. I nodded.

"Is Sonny okay?"

"No… not really," my mom replied. "He really loves you, Will."

"I know he does," I said. "What happened in the hallway?"

"Well, honey, he was clearly upset when Dr. Terry said that you might have… relapsed. He lost his sea legs for a moment," my mom replied. Immediately, I felt guilty for putting my boyfriend through this. It must have been so scary for him when I collapsed at the restaurant.

"Will, is there anything else you want to tell me?" My mom asked.

The truth was I had a lot to tell her. In the past couple of months, I had been feeling odd off and on. I was tired all the time and often lacked an appetite. Furthermore, I'd been having a fever on and off for longer than I could remember. Since my fever had been off and on, I hadn't thought much of it. And school had become busy of late, which is what I attributed being tired to. Now I was wishing I had said something.

"Will?" My mom said again.

"I'm sorry, um, what did you ask me again?" I asked.

"I wanted to know if there is anything else that's going on with you that you didn't tell me," she replied. I sighed and told her what had been going on with me. When I finished, she looked at me with puppy dog eyes. "Oh Will…"

"Look, I'm sorry. I just didn't think anything was seriously wrong, Mom! I mean, I told you that it was on and off," I argued. Just then, the door to the examination room opened and my mom and I turned our heads towards the door. Sonny walked into the room.

"Hey," he murmured.

"Hey. Are you okay?" I asked. Sonny looked up at me and I could see tears glistening in his eyes; my heart clenched. He shook his head slowly.

"What do you think? Will, I saw you collapse and now… God, I just…" Sonny trailed off. He strode towards me purposefully and wrapped his arms around me. I could feel his tears drip onto my shoulder and I wrapped my arms tightly around him.

"I'm just… yeah," my mom said. She awkwardly took a step backward and then turned to leave the room.


End file.
